TAYLORSVILLE — This is not where Lance Davenport imagined he would be.
"I just saw myself coming and doing what I really enjoyed doing for as long as I could do it," the Utah Highway Patrol colonel said Thursday. "I love the profession and I've stayed with it because I enjoyed it. It wasn't for the hours or the money."
Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. named Davenport to be the new commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety, replacing Scott Duncan, who abruptly resigned Tuesday for what has been termed "health reasons." Davenport praised his friend but refused to answer any questions about why Duncan left.
"I think we're going to let it go at that in respect to him. When it comes to health and medical issues, those are very private," he said at a news conference at DPS headquarters on Thursday.
Davenport immediately must tackle a budget crisis that threatens the jobs of hundreds of DPS employees and ease concerns about the leadership transition.
"We'll look at everything we can short of laying people off," Davenport said. "Areas we can cut back we can and will."
Davenport worked his way up the ranks of the Utah Highway Patrol to oversee the state's Bureau of Investigation and eventually was promoted to oversee the UHP in 2006.
Duncan quit after a bizarre incident last week in southern Utah. He had traveled to St. George last week for a meeting but apparently forgot about it and then drove back toward Salt Lake City. The Washington County Sheriff's Office said Duncan's vehicle was swerving in its lane and was stopped. Duncan told a deputy he was distracted by an audiobook. He showed no obvious signs of impairment, authorities said, and was let go.
When he swerved again, the deputy notified a UHP trooper who stopped him a short time later. The UHP said Wednesday that the trooper noticed something was wrong and took Duncan to a Cedar City hospital where he was examined for several hours. He was eventually driven to Salt Lake City and his demeanor was described as "lethargic and somewhat forgetful." Late Tuesday, Duncan quit.
Davenport still must be confirmed by the Utah State Senate before being officially appointed to the post. In the meantime, the governor named him the interim DPS commissioner. UHP Capt. Daniel Fuhr has been selected to take over the Utah Highway Patrol.
E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com